Category Archives: New Jersey News

Rebecca Bennett’s “no corporate PAC money” pledge sounds like a locked door against corporate influence, but her campaign filings suggest there’s an open window through which executives and wealthy investors can waltz right in. The distinction matters. Personal contributions from corporate aristocrats aren’t corporate PAC contributions, but a campaign can honor a narrow pledge whileContinue reading “Bennett’s “no corporate PAC money” pledge comes with million-dollar fine print”

by Dana DiFilippo, New Jersey Monitor Harvey Barry finds it tough to condense all the complaints he has about President Donald Trump, less than halfway through Trump’s second term in the White House. So he picked one, immigration, put his sentiments on a sign, and bundled up for a brisk day outside the Somerset CountyContinue reading “Thousands in NJ push for early voting at No Kings rallies against Trump”

Jamesburg Councilman Bertin Lefkovic is facing explosive new scrutiny after a series of unhinged Facebook posts surfaced, revealing a pattern of inflammatory and racially charged commentary that critics say exposes his true motivations. Lefkovic became the first Democratic elected official to call on Assemblywoman Tennille McCoy (D-Hamilton) to resign Friday amid allegations of a toxicContinue reading “Jamesburg councilman’s racism and bizarre Facebook rants draw scrutiny”

Linden voters will choose a mayor Nov. 3. Democratic Mayor Derek Armstead is asking for another term after a dozen years in office, but independent Carlos A. Rivas, a former Democratic councilman and school board president, says City Hall has stopped listening to residents. Both candidates answered questions about their backgrounds, why they are running,Continue reading “Longtime mayor and independent challenger pitch different paths for Linden”

A New Jersey deputy attorney general was arrested and arraigned Thursday on felony charges alleging he used artificial intelligence to generate and distribute child sexual abuse material, and also shared real child sexual abuse material. Brian Richard Fitzgerald, 51, of Lower Makefield Township, Pennsylvania, faces multiple felony counts, including possession of child sexual abuse material,Continue reading “New Jersey deputy attorney general charged with child pornography crimes”

Although he missed more than 140 roll calls in Congress while hospitalized for psychiatric treatment, Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. voted four times for a proposed federal moratorium on state and local regulation of artificial intelligence that could have prevented New Jersey from enforcing new protections intended to keep the cost of powering massive dataContinue reading “Kean voted four times to stop New Jersey from regulating AI data centers”

by Dana DiFilippo, New Jersey Monitor State, county, and municipal officials got more than $60 million in national opioid settlement funds over the past year that was meant to be spent to repair harms caused by the deadly overdose crisis. Instead, it funded concerts, inflatable bounce houses, DJs, dirt bike demonstrations, police canines, ice cream,Continue reading “Opioid settlement spending shows need for more oversight, NJ advocates warn”

There is an unusually simple way for mem bers of Congress to tell voters where they stand on abortion: Put their names on legislation. That opportunity has been sitting in plain sight in the House. Rep. Christopher Smith, the New Jersey Republican dinosaur whose opposition to abortion has been a defining feature of his congressionalContinue reading “New Jersey Republicans leave voters to decipher the fine print on abortion”

A fourth-generation South Jersey family farm ordered to pay more than $550,000 after a federal labor investigation will take its constitutional challenge to the U.S. Supreme Court this fall in a case that could determine how far federal agencies may go in imposing monetary penalties through their own administrative courts. The us Supreme Court isContinue reading “South Jersey family farm takes fight with Labor Department to Supreme Court”

A federal lawsuit targeting a New Jersey school district’s student privacy policy could have serious consequences for vulnerable young people, mental health experts and LGBTQ+ research organizations warn, as the case intensifies a national debate over parental rights, student safety and gender identity in schools. Moms for Liberty, represented by the conservative legal organization ThomasContinue reading “Neo-Nazi Moms lawsuit could push transgender teens toward suicide, experts warn”

An analysis of state incident data from the Gun Violence Archive reveals a widening gap between the toll of mass shootings in New Jersey and the number of suspects brought to justice, with 19 people killed and 112 wounded in 27 such events since November 2022, while only 10 total suspects have been arrested. InContinue reading “Only 10 arrests after 19 killed and 112 wounded in NJ mass shootings since 2022”

An estimated 5,000 gallons of diesel fuel spilled from a storage tank at a Secaucus data center and entered a creek connected to the Hackensack River, prompting a multi-day cleanup and renewed calls for New Jersey to impose tighter controls on the rapidly expanding data center industry. The spill occurred Friday, Sept. 11, at anContinue reading “5,000 gallons of diesel spill from Secaucus data center into Hackensack River tributary”

Three New Jersey Democrats voted “present” Tuesday on a Republican motion that killed an attempt to impeach President Donald Trump over his administration’s immigration crackdown, while six other Garden State Democrats voted against shelving the articles. The House voted 232-147 to table H.Res. 1486, a privileged resolution introduced by Democratic Rep. Al Green of TexasContinue reading “Three N.J. Democrats decline to oppose motion that killed Trump impeachment effort”

Police have increased patrols and are searching for possible additional victims as authorities investigate two sexual assaults reported months apart in Hightstown, including an attack Friday evening on a 34-year-old woman who told investigators a stranger assaulted her. The Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office and Hightstown Police Department said the latest assault occurred at approximately 7:30Continue reading “Police investigate two sexual assaults in Hightstown; increase patrols”

by Dana DiFilippo, New Jersey Monitor The union that represents New Jersey corrections officers wants lawmakers to expand solitary confinement in state prisons, saying changes are needed to reduce inmates’ assaults on guards. William Sullivan, who heads the officers’ union, is urging lawmakers to introduce a bill this fall that would ease restrictions mandated inContinue reading “Union seeks more solitary confinement in NJ prisons as answer to assaults on guards”

When the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced that South Jersey would receive $99 million in federal funding to replenish beaches in Ocean City, Strathmere, Sea Isle City, Avalon and Stone Harbor, Rep. Jeff Van Drew was quick to claim credit. But now that beachgoers are complaining the work has disrupted their summer vacations, theContinue reading “Summer season federal beach sand replenishment projects are a problem”

Christopher Santana faces a recommended three-year prison term after admitting he accepted payments to carry prohibited items into Newark prison A former senior correctional police officer has admitted taking thousands of dollars in bribes from associates of incarcerated people in exchange for smuggling contraband into Northern State Prison, a scheme authorities say continued for moreContinue reading “Former Northern State Prison guard admits taking bribes to smuggle contraband”

Ashley Brown and Andy Steven Brazil, both 32, were fatally shot outside a North High Street convenience store and gas station early Sunday. Authorities are searching for the person responsible for an early-morning shooting that killed a Millville woman and a Vineland man outside a 24-hour convenience store and gas station, leaving two families grievingContinue reading “Police search for gunman after double homicide in Millville shooting”

by Dana DiFilippo, New Jersey Monitor The New Brunswick officer who shot an elderly woman to death last summer during a standoff at her home will not be criminally charged. Officer Josue Plaza was among several officers who responded last Aug. 8 to a high-rise for senior citizens after a building staffer reported a disruptiveContinue reading “Grand jury declines to charge New Brunswick police officer who fatally shot senior”